Really cute and expertly written. I was skeptical for a long time of George Orwell, especially under the notion that he witnessed in his time some of the roots of the Cold War. Yet his ability to write a fairly reasonable and entertaining story remained in tact and I would consider him one of the most effective authors of the 20th century. I fear that to a certain extent, Orwell's projection of political ideas is weak enough that the book could be taken to mean almost anything the reader wants it to, but this does not detract terribly from the core value of the story.